Elaine May

Born Elaine Berlin in Philadelphia, PA on April 21, 1932, May was the daughter of Yiddish stage actor-director, Jack Berlin. The multi-talented Elaine (who would later take the surname May from the first of her many husbands) began performing onstage as a child, touring in several plays with her father, as well as acting in radio productions. Her sojourn with Chicago's The Compass Players, an improvisational comedy troupe that later evolved into Second City, brought her in contact with the likes of Alan Arkin, Barbara Harris and Paul Sills. But it was her teaming with another Compass player, Mike Nichols, which led to her first brush with fame. In 1956, they formed a successful comic duo and...